$204.6 million is the agreed price for Tri-County Financial Group, calculated at HBT Financial's $36.35 per-share closing price from last Friday. Bloomington, Illinois-based HBT is offering Tri-County shareholders 2.4589 shares of HBT common stock or $71.01 in cash, or a mix of both, for each share they hold, with the deal targeted to close in the first quarter of 2027. The combination would produce roughly $8.3 billion in assets and add 19 First State Bank branches to HBT's existing 83-branch Illinois network.
Deal terms and ownership split
Each Tri-County share converts at a fixed election: 2.4589 HBT common shares, $71.01 in cash, or a combination. The $204.6 million headline is anchored to HBT's $36.35 closing price from Friday. At close, Tri-County shareholders will hold approximately 9% of the combined company. Thomas Prescott, Tri-County's chair, is expected to join the boards of both Heartland Bank and HBT's holding company after the transaction closes.
Fred Drake, HBT's executive chair, said he has followed Tri-County for many years and that both banks serve several of the same markets in central Illinois.
What Tri-County Financial brings
Tri-County Financial Group, the Mendota, Illinois parent of First State Bank, contributes the following to the combined balance sheet:
| Metric | Tri-County (reported) | Combined (projected) |
|---|---|---|
| Assets | $1.6B | $8.3B |
| Deposits | $1.3B | $7.1B |
| Loans | $1.3B | $6.0B |
The 19 First State Bank branches are concentrated in central and northern Illinois, territory HBT describes as the outer reaches of the Chicago metro area. Kirk Ross, Tri-County's president and CEO, said the combined institution will be better positioned to serve customers while preserving the community-level service model that defines both banks.
Branch overlap
HBT's 83 locations plus Tri-County's 19 would push the combined network past 100. Five First State Bank branches sit within two miles of an existing Heartland Bank and Trust office. HBT CFO Peter Chapman told American Banker the bank would consolidate branches in close proximity where logical. The final post-consolidation count was not disclosed.
HBT's acquisition history
This is HBT's 12th deal since 2007. The previous purchase, CNB Bank Shares, closed in March and extended HBT into the St. Louis metropolitan area. Tri-County moves that footprint in a different direction, northward toward Chicago. Regulatory and shareholder approvals are still required before the first-quarter 2027 targeted close.